Epic Games will cover some iOS fees in the ongoing war with Apple

Epic Games had before plans to introduce third-party games to its mobile app, which is available worldwide on Android devices and on iOS in the European Union. The company will also offer a rotating selection of titles for free on mobile devices. Bloons TD 6 and Dungeon of the Endless: Apogee will be the first two free titles. In a on X, Epic said it is still working out some bugs before releasing the new games on its platform.

But the company made waves today with a move that could encourage popular games to join the free-to-play program. Epic plans to cover the cost of the basic iOS technology fee for participants’ first year. Apple charges a CTF of 50 euro cents for each iOS app install after it exceeds 1 million annual downloads and uses a third-party store. Apps with global revenue below €10 million have a three-year grace period.

Blog post by Epic and shared with says that covering the fees “is not financially viable for any third-party app store or for Epic in the long term, but we will do so while the European Commission investigates Apple’s non-compliance with the law.” The law in question is the Digital Markets Act, a digital competition law in Europe that already exists An apple.

The fees charged by Apple and Google for use of their platforms are the source of much debate in the tech and gaming worlds. Epic Games is in conflict with Apple over the years, alleging that the tech giant engaged in anti-competitive behavior.